This February, I have two special anniversaries to celebrate and they go hand in hand. At the 2012 National Farm Machinery Show, I interviewed for a job as interim Executive Director of the Kentucky FFA Foundation, working alongside my mentor and friend Billy Ray Smith as he transitioned to retirement. That day I attended my first Kentucky FFA Foundation board meeting, where I was offered and enthusiastically accepted the position. I had been a high school agriculture teacher and prior to that, I had worked as an intern for the Foundation in college. If you had told me, and the folks that hired me in a bit of a pinch back in 2012, we would still be going strong… I think we may all be surprised. I’m so grateful the folks in that room took a chance on me. 

That day my colleague Matt Chaliff gave me a list of things I needed to work on immediately, the most pressing being promoting this new “Ag Tag” program. Jamie Comer had recently been elected as Agriculture Commissioner and had committed to a transparent and fair farm license plate program. The week before, a few Kentucky FFA and 4-H State Officers had gone to his office and taken a picture at his desk. They quickly mocked up a poster and had over 1,000 printed. They needed me to get them in the hands of every FFA chapter and county clerks office in Kentucky. As a funny side note, the posters were in Keith Rogers' car.  At the time, Keith was the Executive Director of the 4H Foundation and is now Chief of Staff for Ryan Quarles. We have been in this Ag Tag venture together since the very beginning! 

So, I’m celebrating my 10th Anniversary of working with Kentucky FFA by reminiscing on how I stuffed 1,000 posters into hundreds of mailing tubes in my living room to commemorate my new dream job. We worked so hard to tell folks that the $10 voluntary donation included in your farm license plate bill would be divided equally between Kentucky FFA, Kentucky 4H and Kentucky Proud. That fall, we received our first check from the program, FFA’s 1/3 of the total was $109,307. It was a huge win and we celebrated. 

The Ag Tag program kept growing. We worked with Jamie Comer to promote the program and for the last six years with Commissioner Dr. Ryan Quarles. They have both been incredible advocates and partners. We have designed ten posters, several radio ads, lots of press releases, marketing programs, and hundreds of visits to county clerks to share the impact each donation could make. Ten years later, sharing the opportunity for Kentucky farmers to support the program is still a significant part of my work and our budget. In 2021, we had our highest giving year ever and received $245,987. Since the very first year, we proudly give half of that back to the local counties it came from and use the half we retain to support programs that impact all of our members. 

It’s something worth celebrating!! In ten years, Kentucky FFA has received $1,870,935 in Ag Tag funds. We have returned $935,467 back to local FFA chapters to meet their greatest need. That is incredible!! The ag tag money we keep has an impact on members everywhere. It funds our exhibit space in AgLand at the Kentucky State Fair, pays for State FFA Officer travel to visit local chapters, scholarships our students representing Kentucky in contests at the National FFA Convention and additional prize money for their efforts. It also covers our website, helps us create our annual report and is partial funding for our Ag Achiever Grant program, which keeps ag education classrooms up to date with technology and tools. 

The Kentucky FFA Foundation has grown leaps and bounds in ten years and you can credit so much of its success to the Ag Tag program. I still love spreading the good news of Ag Tags! For just $10, you can be a part of the great philanthropic mission of FFA, 4H and Kentucky Proud. Truly, the work of all three organizations grows our industry in every community across the state. By simply giving $10, you get to join us in the mission. 

I looked up the traditional gift for a tenth anniversary. I couldn’t wipe the smile off my face when I learned it was ALUMINUM, the material for license plates. In the last ten years, the number of folks that make the donation has grown, our highest donation rate yet has been 36%. We are thankful, but for the other 64% who don’t make the $10 gift, I hope that the last ten years of total transparency and faithful stewardship of funds at every level will convince you to join us.  

To everyone who has supported the Ag Tag program over the last decade, I want to sincerely thank you. It’s incredible what we have accomplished together. As a reminder, you can pay  your license plate renewals online at drive.ky.gov. Choose “Vehicle Services” and then “Registration Renewal”. It's as easy as can be. 

On a personal note, I want to also thank the folks that took a chance on me ten years ago. I have gotten to work with the most wonderful board, inspiring donors and colleagues that I trust and enjoy being around. It’s been a dream.